Michigan football beats Illinois 19-17: Game thread replay
No. 3 Michigan Wolverines (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten) vs. Illinois Fighting Illini (7-3, 4-3)
When: Noon Saturday.
Where: Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.
TV: ABC.
Radio: WXYT-FM (97.1), WWJ-AM (950), WTKA-AM (1050).
Betting line: Wolverines by 17½.
UPDATE:Michigan football without RB Donovan Edwards for home finale vs. Illinois
RECRUITING CONCERNS:Michigans national ascent has yet to translate into big recruiting wins. Why?
Game notes: If the conference title games are considered de facto quarterfinals for the final four spots in the College Football Playoff, does that make this matchup of arguably the two most productive running backs in the Big Ten this season a Heisman Trophy playoff?
Michigan’s Blake Corum, of course, is getting the major hype: He has 1,349 yards on 227 carries this season — and average of 5.9 yards a touch — and 17 rushing TDs. His total yards rank second among Power Five backs, his yards per game (134.9) rank fifth and his TDs rank second.
The leader among Power Five backs in yards (1,442) and yards per game (144.2), of course, is Illinois’ Chase Brown, who started at Western Michigan before transferring to Champaign. His total of just seven touchdowns on the ground is the biggest stain on his Heisman résumé, and one that his consistency was scrubbing away — Brown entered last week’s game against Purdue with 10 straight games of at least 100 yards, the longest streak in Illinois history (dating all the way back to the days of the legenday Red Grange). But the Boilermakers stopped him at 98 yards (on 23 carries), erasing a seemingly magical talking point.
(Minnesota’s Mohamed Ibrahim leads the nation with 18 rushing TDs, has a 140.1-yards-per-game average that ranks third among Power Five backs and has a 100-yard streak that dates back to the 2019 season, but we won’t hold our breath waiting for a Golden Gopher to get invited to New York in December.)
Then again, Brown isn’t even the only member of his family to keep an eye on for the Illini — his twin brother, Sydney, has been an opportunistic member of Illinois’ secondary, with four interceptions, 45 tackles, seven pass breakups and 3½ tackles-for-loss. One wrong ready by U-M QB J.J. McCarthy and the Wolverines could be asking, “What did Brown do to us?”
After Saturday’s matchup, it’s time for the rivalry matchups: The Wolverines head to Columbus, Ohio, to take on the Buckeyes for a spot in the Big Ten title game in Indianapolis, while the Illini will visit Evanston to take on woeful Northwestern for the title of “Chicago’s Big Ten Team.” We’re not sure if that comes with a trophy or not.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football beats Illinois 19-17: Game thread replay
